1. October 2017. This 2.6 km walkway through West Lake was constructed in 1086 by the famous poet and Hangzhou governor Su Shi. It was a time of great poverty and drought, so Su ordered the dredging of the lake and used the resulting mud to build a new causeway. Later on six bridges were added and willow trees planted on each side. This photo is an aerial view of the causeway taken from the top floor of Leifeng Pagoda.

2. October 2017. My friend and I had actually started thinking that the West Lake holiday crowds weren’t all that bad. But when we got around to tackling Su Causeway… well… oh my god! I like to think this picture speaks for itself.

3. October 2017. Thankfully the further we pushed on the more manageable the foot traffic became. And besides, we could also duck out of the chaos every now and then to chill out in the narrow side banks by the water. Here we found couples cozying up on the rocks and friends huddled together on benches playing with their phones. This little dude wasn’t at all impressed that I’d interrupted his daydreaming by sticking a camera in his face.

4. October 2017. On a quiet day (if there is such a thing on West Lake) I imagine Su Causeway must be an idyllic place to sit and watch the boats go back and forth. Maybe do some reading, or whip out the old Mac for a spell of lakeside writing. If I ever make it back during a normal time of year, this is exactly what I’ll do!

5. October 2017. This amazing lily pad park comes into view towards the end of the causeway’s northern exit.

For more on my time in the city, check out my other articles onHangzhou.